Will you watch the Olympics?

[DGUtley]

Doubtful.

[waltky]

Deja vu all over again...

NBC brings the Cold War back to the Olympics
August 9, 2016 — For a few minutes, it felt like 1980 again. An American versus a Russian, this time squaring off in a swimming pool instead of an ice skating rink.

Lilly King's victory over Russian swimmer Yulia Efimova in the 100-meter breaststroke Monday was portrayed by NBC as a victory of clean sportsmanship over cheating. Efimova had already served a 16-month suspension for doping and tested positive earlier this year for a now-banned substance, and her initial suspension from the Olympics was overturned on appeal. King made no secret of her disapproval of Efimova, both in interviews and body language, and NBC ran with the narrative. Analyst Rowdy Gaines called King's victory a "statement swim" for the rest of the world. It took an extra question from Michele Tafoya after the race, but King said she hoped to send a message "that we can still compete clean and do well at the Olympic Games and that's how it should be." It was a feel-good win for television viewers. And yet...

Was King improperly taking the role of judge and jury for herself? Was she reflecting the Olympic ideals of competition? Was she acting like an ugly American? Those are some uncomfortable questions that could have been brought up, but weren't. And if NBC made an effort to get Efimova's side of the story after her silver medal-winning race, it wasn't apparent to viewers. She spoke afterward and was quoted by other news organizations, including The Associated Press.

United States' Lilly King, left, and Russia's Yulia Efimova compete in the final of the women's 100-meter breaststroke during the swimming competitions at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

TAKE TWO, AND THREE: After getting heat for referring to Hungarian swimmer Katinka Hosszu's husband and coach as "the guy responsible" for her career resurgence after she won a gold medal on Saturday, NBC's Dan Hicks had the chance for a do-over. She won another gold medal, and cameras again found husband Shane Tusup and his man-bun up in the stands. This time Hicks identified Tusup as "instrumental in the turnaround of his wife." Hosszu raced another time Monday, in a semifinal, and this time NBC wisely showed no pictures of Tusup.

CHILDHOOD DRAWINGS: Bowing to shorter attention spans, NBC sometimes needs to move quickly to give viewers a taste of athletes' personalities. Showing childhood drawings made by backstroke gold medalist Ryan Murphy when he dreamed of being a competitive swimmer was a particularly effective example.

QUOTE: "The emotions created by platform diving. There is nothing else like it." —NBC diving announcer Ted Robinson.

RATINGS: Sunday was a bounce-back night in the ratings for NBC. The network's prime-time telecast averaged 29.8 million viewers, higher than Friday's opening ceremony and 9 million more than Saturday's lackluster first night of competition. The stars aligned for NBC on Sunday, with Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky in gold-medal swims that aired live, and a dominating performance by American women gymnasts. It was still below the 36 million viewers NBC had for the corresponding Sunday at the 2012 London Games. However, Olympic fare was also shown on NBCSN and Bravo in prime-time this year. Adding those viewers to NBC's total brings it to 34 million watching the Olympics on Sunday evening. There were no such competing networks in 2012, and NBC also didn't stream its broadcast online, as it does now.

MR. TRAUTWIG REGRETS: NBC gymnastics announcer Al Trautwig said Monday he regretted saying on Twitter that the adoptive parents of U.S. gymnast Simone Biles were not her parents. Biles was adopted as a toddler by her maternal grandfather and his wife after she was placed in foster care. Advocates for adoption had objected to the characterization, and NBC ordered Trautwig to delete the offending tweet.

JONESING FOR THE OLYMPICS: Who says NBC can't call an audible? Charmed by "Saturday Night Live" cast member Leslie Jones' goofy enthusiasm for the Olympics, expressed primarily on her Twitter feed, NBC invited her down to Rio and on Monday she accepted. Jones will arrive Friday to become part of the network's coverage.

BACK TO MARV: It's great to have the ageless Marv Albert (OK, he's 75) back behind the mic covering the men's basketball tournament for the first time since 2000. Wasn't he shouting, "Yessss!" when the ancient Greeks successfully drove to the hoop? Make no mistake, Doug Collins is the star of the basketball announcing team now. He analyzed the Americans' slow start against Venezuela on Monday with bite and precision. The Venezuelans are "not going to be talented enough to beat the United States, but teams moving on will watch this," Collins said as the 50-point underdog kept things even for the first quarter.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/bounce-ba...53.html?ref=gs

[AeonPax]

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I watched this instead and it cured me of wanting to watch any more
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[waltky]

Olympic pool turns a mystery green...

Olympics-Sailing-Athletes fed up with Rio water-quality complaints
August 9, 2016 - Despite reports of dangerous levels of pollution in Rio's Guanabara Bay and concerns that floating garbage could damage or slow competitors' boats, sailors at the 2016 Olympics are showing little or no fear of getting into the water.

After the first day of racing in the Olympic Regatta on Monday athletes drenched and dripping after hours of racing scoffed at questions about their safety and risks to their health from studies showing high levels of bacteria and viruses. Many said the dangers of sailing in Rio have been overblown and worried that the water concerns are overshadowing some of the most exciting and challenging sailing of their lives. Worse, they fear it could undermine one of the best chances ever to expand interest in a sport that demands both physical prowess and keen intelligence. "People exaggerate about this, obviously it isn't great, but it's not bad either," Tom Burton, Australia's entry in the men's one-person Laser dinghy class. "I didn't see any tide lines with garbage on it. The water is fine, I've been here a long time and it's fine."

Sailors compete in the Women's Laser Radial class on Day 4 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Marina da Gloria

In the weeks before the regatta, similar feelings were expressed by Erik Heil, skipper of Germany's Olympic entry into the 49er two-man skiff class. Heil made headlines after being treated in Germany for an antibiotic-resistant, flesh-eating Staphylococcus infection that chewed small craters into his leg after a test regatta in Rio last year. He said there was really no way of knowing where he got the infection which exists naturally on many people's bodies. Brazilian sailors, many of whom grew up on the bay, know of the problems and feel critics are being overly squeamish. The highly ranked British, German and Croatian sailing teams have said they are taking precautions, such as hepatitis vaccines, showering off after races, protecting water bottles in Ziploc bags and using mouthwash if they get lots of water in their mouths.

Olympic Athletes Are Essentially Defenseless Against Rio's Horribly Polluted Water

But they also add that these are the same precautions they take in many other sailing venues. Australia's rowing team, competing on Rio's Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon - also criticized for pollution - have said much the same, adding that they face similar risks training at home and in Europe. "I've sailed in worse conditions and think the water pollution situation is exaggerated," said Andrew Lewis, Trinidad & Tobago's entry in the men's Laser. "This is my fifth time back to Rio, and I've never gotten sick and never got any infection," he said. "It's time for all this complaining to stop."

https://www.yahoo.com/news/olympics-...pt.html?ref=gs

See also:

Rio 2016: 'I've never dived in anything like it' - Olympic pool turns green
Tue, 09 Aug 2016 - Divers are forced to dive into green water at the Olympic diving pool with organisers left to investigate the cause of the colour change.

Confusion abounded at the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre as the normally azure pool water turned a swampy green for the women's synchronised 10m platform final. Divers were forced to compete in water the colour sea lions - rather than Olympians - are accustomed to performing in. Questions were asked on social media. Had Shrek taken an overnight dip? Was it because Roald Dahl's BFG had been drinking frobscottle?

On Monday, Tom Daley and Daniel Goodfellow had won bronze in then picture-perfect conditions and even Daley did not know what had happened to the clear water he had dived into just 24 hours earlier. "Erm, what happened," tweeted the Briton. At the Aquatics Centre, Pedro Adrega, head of communications at Fina, swimming's governing body, was flabbergasted, suggesting that the athletes had perhaps requested for the colour change to lessen the effects of the sun's glare. Inside the press room, American photographers chatted about the possibility of the water having not been treated properly overnight, causing a drop in chlorine levels and the formation of algae.

As the competition progressed, the water looked more like pea green soup while the pool next to it - where water polo and synchronised swimming is held - remained in perfect health. "I've never dived in anything like it," said Britain's Tonia Couch, who finished fifth alongside Lois Toulson. "We noticed it in the warm-up and then by the competition it was even more green but if anything it actually made it a bit easier to spot (tell where the water was while spinning through the air), so it didn't make a difference though (to the result)."

Once competition was over, organisers released a statement to say that they were still investigating the cause of what was being described on social media as pool gate. "It's very important to the Rio 2016 community to ensure a high quality of play," read the statement. "Tests were conducted and the water was found to be safe. We're investigating what the cause was."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/37029833

[waltky]

Granny says, "Ya mean dey gotta pay taxes on dey's medals???...

Olympic champions will owe taxes on their medals, bonuses
Aug 10, 2016 - When Americans win at the Olympic Games, we all win. But some of us win a little more than others.

This is your periodic reminder that the Olympic medals, and the bonuses that the athletes win for snaring a gold, silver or bronze, continue to be taxed as income. You probably already know that prizes, such as lottery, casino or game show winnings, are taxable. Medals and prize bonuses fall under that same umbrella, even if winning an Olympic medal requires a bit more effort than, say, scratching off a card. In addition to a priceless memento, U.S. athletes also win bonuses of $25,000 for a gold-medal performance, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze. All of that is taxable.

If there’s good news to this, it’s that the medals’ actual monetary value, the basis on which they are taxed, is surprisingly cheap. Forbes pegs the value of a gold medal at about $564, give or take depending on the price of gold. (A completely gold medal, rather than a gold-plated one, would be about $22,000.) Silver medals are worth about $305, while bronze medals, with their mixture of copper and zinc, possess “little intrinsic value.” Any athlete with a halfway decent accountant ought to be able to offset at least a portion of potential tax with expenses racked up for training and traveling, provided the athlete is treating their sport as a profession.

The idea of taxing Olympians strikes some as a bit unsavory, or at least seems an opportunity to score some easy political points. Sen. Marco Rubio proposed a bill in 2012 to exempt Olympians from the tax, saying at the time, “We can all agree that these Olympians who dedicate their lives to athletic excellence should not be punished when they achieve it.” That bill failed to pass, but another awaits action in the House of Representatives after passing the Senate, and President Obama has said he is in favor of an exemption.

https://sports.yahoo.com/news/olympi...031322377.html

More doping athletes caught...

Chinese, Polish and Bulgarian athletes sanctioned for doping
Aug 12,`16 -- A Chinese swimmer, a Polish weightlifter and a Bulgarian steeplechaser were expelled or suspended Friday from the Olympics for doping, the first athletes sanctioned after failing drug tests at the games.

Weightlifter Tomasz Zielinksi and steeplechaser Silvia Danekova were kicked out of the games after testing positive for banned substances, the Court of Arbitration for Sport said. Swimmer Chen Xinyi accepted a "provisional suspension" after testing positive for a diuretic. CAS said her case will continue, with a final decision to be issued before the end of the games. The 18-year-old Chen's Olympics were over anyway. She finished fourth Sunday in the 100-meter butterfly and pulled out before Friday's 50-meter freestyle, her final event of the games.

These were the first decisions issued by CAS, which is handling doping cases at the Olympics for the first time. The International Olympic Committee handed over responsibility to CAS in a bid to make the process more independent. Chen tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide, which is listed by the World Anti-Doping Agency as a "specified substance." Athletes testing positive for those substances can receive reduced penalties because of the possibility the drug was taken inadvertently. "The athlete accepted a provisional suspension on a voluntary basis," CAS said of Chen. "As a consequence, the athlete is provisionally suspended from competing at the Olympic Games. The procedure will continue and the CAS (anti-doping division) will issue a final award before the end of the games."

China's Chen Xinyi reacts after winning the women's 50m freestyle swimming final at the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. The Chinese Swimming Association said Chen Xinyi tested positive for the substance without providing specifics. Xinhua, the official state news agency, reported the story

Zielinski, who was scheduled to compete in the 94-kilogram division, tested positive for the steroid 19-Norandrosterone, while Danekova tested positive for EPO, a blood-boosting hormone that aids stamina and endurance. Both were excluded from the games and stripped of their Olympic accreditation. Their cases were handed over to their international federations for possible further sanctions. Both could face two-year bans.

Danekova, 33, was not considered a medal contender in the steeplechase, which starts with heats Saturday. Zielinski already had been sent home from Rio after his positive test. On Friday, the Polish weightlifting federation said his brother, Tomasz, a gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympics, tested positive for the steroid nandrolone in Poland on July 1 and faces being sent home from Rio.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...08-12-15-20-40

[AZ Jim]

I'll watch the ladies Jello wrestling.

[sachem]

I haven't watched any of it yet. I have read a snippet here and there on the internet.

[waltky]

Granny says somebody needs to call the pool man...

Olympic officials try to clean green-tinged diving pool
August 12, 2016 — Olympic divers planning to practice Friday arrived to a closed pool as officials took more time to clean the green-tinged water before holding the first individual event of the Rio Games.

The water suddenly changed color Tuesday, midway through the synchronized diving events. Officials insisted the water was safe for competing, even after a larger, adjacent pool used for water polo and synchronized swimming also turned a lighter shade of green. The diving well was shut down when athletes arrived for morning warmups, though it did finally open at 1 p.m. local time — just 2 1/2 hours before the start of the women's 3-meter event. The water color appeared to be closer to normal but was still shaded green. American diver Abby Johnston, who is competing on the springboard, said she showed up for her warmup, only to learn the pool was shut down without any notice. She wrote on Twitter that "#FixTheSwamp" should start trending. British diver Tom Daley, who won bronze in the synchro platform event, also commented on the state of the pool in a Twitter post. "Hopefully that means we haven't been diving in anything too bad the last couple of days!" Daley said.

Mario Andrada, chief spokesman for the local organizing committee, stressed that the pool was safe for competition, clearing the way for the 3-meter preliminaries. He conceded that some athletes were bothered by the water, but said that was a result of efforts to clean the pool. "We reiterate what we have been saying all along — the water does not offer any threat to the health of the athletes," he said. "In the first day of this water situation, one or two athletes complained about their eyes being itchy. This was a result that the first reaction when we saw the water turning green was to use one of the chemicals — chlorine — that is very common in swimming pools. We reduced immediately the quantity. We retested the water and it was totally within the parameters."

Simon Langford, chief spokesman for the Maria Lenk Aquatics Center, said the pool was closed to allow additional cleaning. He said the decision was supported by world governing body FINA. "The reason is that the water must be still so the pool can return to its blue color as soon as possible," Langford said in a statement. Andrada said officials were caught off guard by the pool's deteriorating condition. "Chemistry is not an exact science," he said. "Some things, as you can see, went longer than expected."

Rain the past couple of days made it even tougher to get the water color back to normal. "The rain doesn't help," Andrada said. He added that athletes had access to dry-land training in the morning, but conceded that "was not ideal." He explained that the changing color of the pool was the result of increased alkaline levels, much like aquarium water can turn green when not monitored properly. "When we went to fix the green, there was a discussion about the best chemicals. We can't use too much chemicals in the water because athletes are training in it," Andrada said. "We certainly could have done better in the beginning to prevent the water from turning green. Once it turned green, we again made another bit of a mistake."

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/...ed-diving-pool